Call for Proposals: Symposia, Integrative Events, and Workshops

The 2022 Joint Aquatic Sciences Meeting (JASM) will be held in Grand Rapids, Michigan, May 14-20, 2022.

The JASM Program Committee invites proposals for symposia, pre-conference workshops/professional development courses, and integrated events which support the conference theme:

Rapid Changes 〜 Collaborative Solutions 

This unique conference is being organized by the Consortium of Aquatic Science Societies (CASS), which includes nine society members:

• American Fisheries Society
• Association for the Sciences of Limnology and Oceanography
• Coastal and Estuarine Research Federation
• Freshwater Mollusk Conservation Society
• International Association for Great Lakes Research
• North American Lake Management Society
• Phycological Society of America
• Society for Freshwater Science
• Society of Wetland Scientists

Collaboration among disciplines is critical to address common problems, whether in wetlands, streams, lakes, or oceans, and to study these problems from an ecosystem perspective. Collaboration is also necessary to conduct translational research that delivers actionable results which support science-based solutions.  We encourage proposals that bring together scientists from across the spectrum of the CASS members and encourage session organizers to not just consider diverse topics, but also speakers and the unique perspectives offered by our colleagues both inside and outside the organizations of CASS. We look forward to proposals exploring all aspects of aquatic science.  As you prepare your proposal and plan your session, please strive to build sessions that include a diversity of speakers by considering career stage, gender, race, ethnicity, geography, and perspective.

The Hybrid Conference Model

One important lesson from the pandemic has been the value of providing remote access to scientific meeting content. This has allowed registrants broad access to the science, not just the slim subset of presentations that they might have attended in a pre-pandemic live event. JASM2022 will employ a hybrid meeting model to create an exciting in-person event but also provide for submission and access to content for those unable to travel to Grand Rapids. Presenters and attendees will be able to access the core science content through the following formats:

• Live-Streamed from Grand Rapids – Plenary sessions and selected other events will be live streamed as well as recorded and available online.
• In-person Symposium and Contributed sessions – All oral and poster presentations delivered in Grand Rapids will be pre-recorded and available online to all attendees.
• Virtual Symposium and Contributed sessions – Submissions of papers and posters by those unable to travel will be included as pre-recorded content and attached to appropriate symposium and contributed sessions.

Abstracts for symposium and contributed oral/poster sessions can be submitted for either a live, in-person or recorded, virtual presentation. All presenters are required to provide a recorded version of their presentation prior to the meeting. The recorded presentations will be made available to all in-person and virtual attendees, during and after the meeting. We will not be able to accommodate live, remote presentations during the conference. Guidance and additional instructions will be provided in future correspondence.

The JASM 2022 volunteer conference planning teams are working hard to plan a successful meeting. While we will continue to plan for an in-person conference, we are monitoring COVID guidelines and recommendations with the aim of keeping our CASS community and the Grand Rapids community healthy and safe. Contingency planning is in place should the meeting need to be entirely virtual. We will provide updates on the JASM 2022 website.

Symposia

Symposium proposals should explore some of the rapid changes occurring in aquatic ecosystems and integrate perspectives (particularly among CASS societies) to consider how scientific research and new technologies can inform collaborative solutions. We also welcome sessions that address collaborations between aquatic sciences and social sciences, including economics, public policy, and resource management. Symposia that feature advancements in science outreach and education are encouraged, and presenters will be allowed to submit an abstract to both a scientific and an outreach-education session. Sessions that focus on a single project or narrow topic (e.g., a single location) are not encouraged.

By proposing a symposium, you are expected to serve as symposium organizer, identify moderators, encourage potential presenters to submit abstracts, and inform potential presenters of key dates for abstract submission and other program deadlines. All symposia are open to contributed presentations in addition to those invited by organizers; we expect that symposia will include a mix of invited and self-nominated participants.

Symposia will be constructed in 90-minute blocks and can consist of multiple blocks in sequence. Each day will consist of a single morning block and two afternoon blocks. A symposium may include standard 15-minute presentations (i.e., a 12-minute presentation followed by 3 minutes for questions and answers), an invited synthesis talk (i.e., a presentation that fills two 15-minute presentation slots) , interactive discussions or panels, 5-minute lightning presentations, and/or poster presentations, or a combination of these formats. Creative proposals for sessions that utilize unique and engaging design and approaches are encouraged.

Workshops/Professional Development

Pre-conference workshops will be offered onsite as half-day, full-day, or two-day sessions. All workshops will be scheduled on Saturday, May 14, and Sunday, May 15, 2022. While we anticipate on-site workshops, proposals for virtual workshops will be considered.

Workshops should be designed to offer in-depth professional development/continuing education that is of interest to a variety of participants, ranging from students to professionals. It is also acceptable to propose workshops for specific audiences.

Attendance at workshops is by advance registration only. Workshop organizers will be asked to assign registration fees at two levels:  Professional and Student/Early Career. Conference organizers will deduct a flat fee of $25 per registrant to cover standard space and AV needs (projector, screen, and laptop); revenue over this minimum will be shared with the workshop organizer. Workshops may offer food or beverages, but these services will need to be either included in the registration fee or covered through support provided by a workshop sponsor. In either case, the session organizer will work with event staff to include these arrangements into the workshop.

Integrative Events

NEW! EXCITING! Integrative Events seek to connect members across our numerous aquatic societies and serve to supplement and/or complement other JASM content. These events will occur during non-science session hours (e.g., during breakfast and lunch periods and immediately after symposium sessions conclude for the day, with the provision of food possible at added cost). Integrative Events will transcend our society boundaries and bring aquatic scientists together who traditionally might not interact, for example those in different societies or at different career levels. Integrative Events that are geared towards scientific content may offer the opportunity to delve deeper into an emerging/important topic of interest (e.g., microplastics, HABs, invasive species, societally-important ecosystems), highlight successful interactions between science and policy, present formal scientific debate, or continue discussion of special symposia (e.g., hosting a separate round table or panel discussion). Aimed at career, professional, and personal development, events that create a “live jobs board,” discuss solutions to the lack of equity or diversity in science, or that foster effective science communication would also make excellent proposals. On the “more creative” side, we welcome events that explore aquatic sciences through the arts (i.e., art exhibitions or music jam sessions). Integrated events are also an ideal medium to incorporate live-virtual events with colleagues around the globe.

Proposal Submission and Requirements

All proposals must be submitted by September 24, 2021, 11:59 PM EDT through the online submission site using the link provided above. Proposals will be reviewed by the Program Committee. The Program Committee may request revisions or collaborations to strengthen the offerings.

It is acceptable for multiple session types to discuss the same topic. In such cases, organizers need to submit a proposal for each session type. Conference Chairs will work with organizers to schedule as appropriate.

The submission process will prompt you for the following information:

1. Session Type – symposium, workshop, integrative event (10 words or less)
2. Preferred Session Length (Workshops and Symposia only)
   1. Symposia – 90-minute blocks (can be one or more as determined by submissions)
   2. Workshops/Professional Development – 2-day, 1-day, or half-day (4 hours)
   3. Integrative Events – 90 minutes only
3. Session Title
4. Organizer(s) – names and complete contact information (the submitting organizer will be the contact person)
5. Topics – select up to 3
6. A brief description of the session. This will be used to advertise your session (450 character limit)
7. Abstract of the session (1,500 character limit)

Symposium Session proposals only:

1. Preferred session format: Symposia will be built in 90-minute blocks. You may propose a traditional format (15-minute talks), lightning format (5-minute talks), or a combination of both. The JASM Program Committee will allocate time and organizers and build their session with a combination of formats. You may also request the inclusion of an invited synthesis talk (i.e., a presentation that fills two 15-minute presentation slots), interactive discussions, or panel.

Workshop and Integrative Events proposals also require the following additional information:

1. Minimum Attendance
2. Maximum Attendance
3. AV requirements – each room will be provided with a screen, projector and laptop.
4. Preferred room set up or virtual – each room will be set up in a theater model
5. Catering needs or off-site requests (all catering costs will be paid by the session organizer)
6. Registration fees for professionals and student/early career professionals. If registration fees exceed the minimum ($25), please include a description of the associated budget.
   1. Workshop/Professional Development – a minimum fee of $25 for professionals and $15 for students/ early professionals will be charged to each participant and this fee will go to CASS
   2. Integrated Events – no minimum is requested; fee can be required for catering

Proposal Evaluation and Notice of Decision:  Submitting Organizer will be notified regarding the status of their proposal by Monday, October 22, 2021.

Questions: Please direct any questions related to proposal preparation, session ideas, technical requests or other issues to Tricia Fry, Program Committee Coordinator, at tfry@fisheries.org.